(1) Serena Williams v Urszula Radwanska Petra Kvitova v Jill Craybas Q v Andrea Petkovic Ayumi Morita v Carla Suarez Navarro (32) (21) Sabine Lisicki v Petra Martic Varvara Lepchenko v Alberta Brianti Kristina Barrois v Akgul Amanmuradova Q v Sam Stosur (13)
(9) Vera Zvonareva v Kristina Kucova Kai-Chen Chang v Iveta Benesova Q v Gisela Dulko Q v Ana Ivanovic (20) (28) Elena Vesnina v Tathiana Garbin Kimiko Date Krumm v Yaroslava Shvedova Stefanie Voegele v Melinda Czink Stepanie Cohen-Aloro v Victoria Azarenka (7)
(4) Caroline Wozniacki v Aleksandra Wozniak Tamira Paszek v Julia Goerges Galina Voskoboeva v Tsvetana Pironkova Lucie Hraecka v Shahar Peer (29) (22) Daniela Hantuchova v Viktoriya Kutuzova Jarmila Groth v Q Stephanie Dubois v Agnes Svazay Marina Erakovic v Na Li (16)
(10) Agnieszka Radwanska v Tatjana Malek Melanie Oudin v Alla Kudryavtseva Julie Coin v Alicia Molik Alize Cornet v Francesca Schiavone (17) (25) Anabel Medina Garrigues v Karolina Sprem Anastasiya Yakimova v Casey Dellacqua Aranxta Parra Santonja v Sybille Bammer Lucie Safarova v Venus Williams (6)
(5) Elena Dementieva v Vera Dushevina Kirsten Flipkens v Justine Henin Soraa Cirstea v Olivia Rogowska Jelena Dokic v Alisa Kleybanova (27) (18) Virgine Razzano v Ekaterina Makarova Klara Zakopalova v Sara Errani Q v Alexandra Dulgheru Anna Chakvetadze v Flavia Pennetta (12)
(15) Kim Clijsters v Q Sesil Karatantcheva v Tamarine Tanasugarn Yung-Jan Chan v Kaia Kanepi Edina Gallovits v Nadia Petrova (19) (26) Aravane Rezai v Sania Mirza Olga Govortsova v Q Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova v Anastasija Sevastova Anastasia Rodionova v Svetlana Kuznetsova (3)
(8) Jelena Jankovic v Monic Niculsecu Patricia Mayr v Katie O'Brien Q v Polona Hercog Q v Alona Bondarenko (31) (24) Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez v Evgeniya Rodina Jie Zheng v Shuai Peng Coco Vandeweghe v Sandra Zahlavova Rossana De Los Rios v Marion Bartoli (11)
(14) Maria Sharapova v Maria Kirilenko Q v Timea Bacsinszky Anna-Lena Groenefeld v Roberta Vinci Vania King v Dominika Cibulkova (23) (30) Kateryna Bondarenko v Ioana Raluca Olaru Pauline Parmentier v Elena Baltacha Barbora Zahlavova Strycova v Q Magdalena Rybarikova v Dinara Safina (2)
MELBOURNE, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Justine Henin insists her comeback at next week’s Australian Open will be no mere cameo and called on her opponents to test her to her limit.
The former world number one reached the final in Brisbane last week in her first tournament back after 18 months out of the game and said the tough three-set loss to fellow Belgian Kim Clijsters was exactly what she needed.
“I couldn’t expect something better than what happened in Brisbane in terms of the rhythm and intensity of the game that pushed me to another level that I wasn’t use to any more,” the 27-year-old told reporters on Saturday.
“That match really helped me. I still need these kind of matches to really take my game to another level.”
After a first-round encounter against compatriot Kirsten Flipkens, Henin may get exactly what she wishes for at Melbourne Park with Russian fifth seed Elena Dementieva a likely second-round encounter.
Should she progress, Henin could set up a quarter-final against either 2009 French Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova or Clijsters, who won the U.S. Open on her own comeback last year.
Henin, who quit the game in 2008, said she was now “200 percent” committed to her job and had a new calmness and maturity which would help her return to her best.
“I learned a lot of things in the last 18 months. I wouldn’t say I’ve changed but I probably grew up,” she said. “Now I think that I’m going to be as engaged as I was before.
“The experience I had the last two years will help me more calm, more quiet and more mature with my life on the tour.”
FEELING CURIOUS
Henin, who was given a wild card to play here, admitted to feeling curious about how she would feel returning to Melbourne Park, where she defeated Clijsters in the final in 2004.
“It was great to be on the Rod Laver (Arena) again, to hit on this magical court, to see all these people again, people that I didn’t see for a long time,” she said.
“A few things have changed outside but the atmosphere is still the same… It’s a great feeling to be back. Grand slam is a different kind of atmosphere.
“It takes a lot of energy, so I need a dew days to find my place again. I feel it’s my place to be here.”
Henin has overcome leg and foot soreness that forced her withdrawal from this week’s Sydney International and is “almost” at full fitness before the year’s first grand slam.
“I still need to get my confidence again and it will take probably a few weeks, probably a few tournaments maybe a few months to really be at my top,” she said.
“I don’t plan my career on three of four weeks here in Australia, it’s for the next few months when I have a little bit more experience.
“It doesn’t mean I cannot win matches (like at Brisbane). I come with the same attitude in Melbourne.”
Q. What were your first feelings when you came back into the arena?
JUSTINE HENIN: It's like a few things have changed on‑site, but generally the atmosphere is still the same. Not a lot of things have changed. It's a great feeling to be back.
Grand Slam is different. It's different feeling from what I lived in Brisbane, of course. It's different kind of atmosphere, and a lot of people. That takes a lot of energy. So need a few days to, you know, find the good rhythm and to find my place again.
But I feel it's my place to be here. That's already a great thing. And it was great to be on the Rod Laver Arena again and to hit on this magical court, to see all these people again, people that I didn't see for a long time. So it was interesting.
I was curious about what I was going to feel, but it's only positive things. Glad to be here really.
Q. Having had 19 months out to reestablish your sense of self, do you feel after a week back on the tour it's going to be difficult to keep that sense that you got of yourself off the tour?
JUSTINE HENIN: It's always the same problem: when you are far away, yeah, you take some distance, then when you come back you're into it very quickly.
But I don't think things are going to be the same as before because I learned a lot of things in the last 18 months, a lot of things on myself. I wouldn't say I've changed, but I probably grew up, and I realized that I was somebody except being only a tennis player, and this person is really important to me now.
So now I think that I'm going to be as engaged as I was before, focused, concentrate 200% on my job. I know there is something else. The distance I could take is going to help me, I hope. The experience I got in the last two years will help me to, yeah, be, you know, more calm and quiet and more mature in my life on the tour. I hope so.
Q. With you and Kim back, do you feel a feeling that Belgium is back in the ballgame?
JUSTINE HENIN: It's a great feel. With Yanina playing great in the last few months, Kim, Kirsten and me. I mean, Belgium, couldn't think it would happen again to have a Belgium final like last week. So it's a good feeling. I think now we realize how lucky we were to be both at the same time in the top for such a small country.
I think this time we probably going to enjoy it a little more than in the past.
Q. How would you assess your form at the moment? You had that strain to the glut. How would you assess your form?
JUSTINE HENIN: Well, I couldn't expect something better than what happened in Brisbane in terms of rhythm and intensity of the game. And I think that Kim pushed me to another level that I wasn't used to it anymore, of course. I think that is what I needed before coming here.
Of course, I would have preferred to go and play in Sydney, but physically I needed a few days to cover. My glut were painful. After three or four days, I was almost hundred percent. Then my left foot was a bit sore also.
I could practice, I would say normally, in the last three or four days. And I feel good in practice. Of course, competition is another thing. Especially in Grand Slams, a lot of things can happen. Every match is difficult.
But I feel like I'm still here to build my confidence again. And it will take probably a few weeks, maybe a few tournaments, maybe a few months, to really be at my top. Doesn't mean I cannot win matches. That's the attitude I got in Brisbane. You know, I was ready to live everything, but things, good things. It's been quite constructive.
I think I come with the same attitude here in Melbourne. Day after day we're going to see what's going to happen.
Q. You talk about building confidence. Were you surprised where you reached in Brisbane?
JUSTINE HENIN: Of course, I was a little surprised because you never know what to expect. I've been really focused on myself and the hard work I did on myself in the last five months. I've been working maybe harder than in the past. And I wanted to play. I had a lot of fun on the court and I really enjoy my game out there. So that was the most important thing.
And then match after match, I was in a better rhythm. It's been hard for a set and a half in the final against Kim, because the intensity was high. I needed a little time to get used to it. After that match I could feel in practice the last few days I could bring my intensity to another level. That match probably helped me.
I still need these kind of matches to put my game in another level, and physically I'm going to see how I'm going to react also in the next few weeks.
But, yeah, it's been a good surprise. But it's only the beginning and it's going to take ‑‑ you know, I don't plan my career on three or four weeks here in Australia; it's for the next few months and I hope next few years.
Q. How do you look at the competition in today's level? Now you have new players coming up like Caroline Wozniacki. How do you look at the competition now?
JUSTINE HENIN: It's still new for me, my comeback. It's only two weeks that I'm back on the tour. So it's still a bit early to talk about that because I couldn't see a lot of matches.
I mean, I just have to have the experience of the matches I had in Brisbane. But, of course, new faces, young players, but I don't know them enough to really give an opinion on that now. In a few weeks, I'll be probably more able to ‑‑ and I don't have to judge that. I come to do my best and to express hundred percent what I can give.
Doesn't matter the opponent in front of me. It's not gonna change from the past. But maybe in a few weeks we can talk a little more about that.
Q. In your very first match on this comeback, did your stomach sort of go round and round and you wondered if you could hit the ball over the net?
JUSTINE HENIN: I was quite excited but not that nervous ‑ not as nervous as what I could expect I would be. No, it was emotional. I mean, just the time I was going to walk on court, it was emotional. And I think the crowd gave me an unbelievable support in Brisbane. It was a great crowd.
Australian people, they know tennis. They have the culture of the sport. I think it was a great place to start again my second career. So it was a great feeling.
Of course, I could feel that still, I mean, a lot of things have to improve. But the attitude was positive. And it was more like I was excited. Patience is not my biggest quality, so it was good (smiling).
Seven-time Grand Slam champion Justine Henin returned to the Australian Open looking like she had never left, taking a solid 6-4 6-3 first round victory over her young and powerful countrywoman, Kirsten Flipkens.
It was calm and collected victory for the elder of the two Belgians, who looked slightly nervous at times in her first match at a major in two years, but the mature and thoughtful 27-year-old composed herself and then felt right at home on the big stage.
“It's something new to come back,” she said. “It's a situation I've never been in the past, so it's different. But it's a good feeling. I feel it's my place to be here. So that's already good enough. Then I'll need the patience in the next few weeks, few tournaments to really feel at my level and keep the intensity. That's the hardest thing, is to keep always the concentration, the intensity very high.”
Henin played a smart and consistent contest against the up and down Flipkens, whose go-for-broke attitude didn’t pay dividends nearly enough against the Australian Open 2004 champion.
Henin, who has vowed to add a comprehensive net attack to her high variety game, consistently came forward, converting 18 of 27 points on net approaches and largely keeping Flipkens on her back foot.
“It's the way I have to play. I can't say that I go a lot to the net because maybe in the next match it's going to be harder,” said Henin, who nailed 22 winners to only 11 from Flipkens.
“So today I went a lot because I had the opportunities. But I have to do it all the time. But I think it's the way I have to play if I am to get better on grass also in the future. And I think that when I put pressure, that's how I'm better player.”
It was an emotional return for the scrappy Belgian, whose last match on the site was a blowout at the hands of Maria Sharapova in the fourth round in 2008. But Henin, who just returned to play after a year and half off due to burn out in Brisbane, is clearly a much more motivated player than she was then. Like her countrywoman Kim Clijsters and former No.1 Martina Hingis, the wear and tear of tour life got her, and she needed to time to recharge her batteries. Few top players can play for decades straight without some sort of mental toll being exacted from them.
“Kim and I we were quite young at the top, it's a life that asks a lot,” Henin said. “Especially the way we do it with a lot of discipline, winning a lot of matches. Just before we retired, we've been so consistent all the time. And, of course, physically and mentally it's really hard. That's why I think when I see very young players coming on the tour, I'm concerned for them because it's tough. Of course, at 25 I was feeling at the end of my first career quite, whew, tired and I need some air. And that takes everything from you, this kind of life. And you're not able at that age to take the distance you need to understand that, there is something else than tennis, really to find a good stability. It's not easy.”
Henin has had a tremendous amount of success at the tournament, besting Clijsters in a dramatic three-setter in the 2004 final, and also reaching the final in 2006, where she was forced to retire with stomach cramps against Amelie Mauresmo.
At the start of this season, even though she hadn’t played a match since May 2008, Henin returned with a vengeance, reaching the Brisbane final where she had match points against Clijsters before falling in dramatic third-set tie-breaker.
She’ll play Sydney titlist and fifth seed Elena Dementieva in the next round, which will likely be a very difficult contest. But she’s still focusing on improving, and from the look of her relentless attack against Flipkens, she already has.
“I want to get better because I think it has sense to do it because I want to do it better,” she said.
“And not about just my opponents, but just me, the fact that I want to improve and get better because I love challenges. And there are a lot of girls that are playing good tennis. New generation also. The good thing is that I don't feel old yet. When I came here I realised it was six years ago I won the Australian Open, so it did hit me a little bit. Physically and mentally, I don't feel like I'm part of the old generation, so that's good. But of course getting better is something that not only in my tennis, but in my life. I think it's the goal of everyone, is to get better every day. It's going to be my goal on and off the court.”
JUSTINE HENIN: It was a long day, I mean, long wait. It wasn't easy conditions for me to play my first match in Grand Slam for a long time.
It's always very special. It's been difficult conditions today. I've been lucky I could play. I mean, so I was happy with that.
In the match, it wasn't that easy because there wasn't a lot of rhythm. So I was feeling a bit with no energy at the beginning, you know, after the long wait. Slowly but surely in the second set I started to be a bit more aggressive, and I think I was better at the end.
But I'm glad this first round is behind me and that I can be focused on the next one.
Q. What did you like about your game?
JUSTINE HENIN: Well, came a lot to the net actually. I mean, I took the opportunities. Just tried to move forward. It was a good match to do it. I think I won quite a lot of points when I was at the net, so it was pretty positive in terms of move forward a little bit more than in the past.
Q. Did it feel a little unusual for you? What was it like getting back on?
JUSTINE HENIN: Unusual? I mean, well, it's something new to come back, of course. It's a situation I've never been in in the past, so it's different. But it's a good feeling.
Like I said a few days ago, I feel it's my place to be here. So that's already good enough. Then I'll need the patience in the next few weeks, few tournaments to really feel at my level and keep the intensity.
That's the hardest thing, is to keep always the concentration, the intensity very high. So it's going to be probably the hardest for me in the next future, next tournaments.
But it's a good feeling to be back here.
Q. Is that what you were talking about with the rhythm, it was hard to find? Was that due to your opponent, or your own rhythm was tough to find?
JUSTINE HENIN: Well, I wasn't probably at the beginning aggressive enough, and Kirsten, you know, she mix a lot, a lot of slices. Sometimes she hits the ball pretty fast, so that wasn't easy for a first round.
But also the fact that I don't have really competition for a long time, it's not gonna help me now in these matches to be, you know, really intense for the whole match.
That's going to be the point that I'll have to work on in the next matches.
Q. Do you feel like you have to get better to be successful again?
JUSTINE HENIN: I want to get better because I think it has sense to do it because I want to do it better. And not about the others and my opponents, but just me, the fact that I want to improve my game and get better than the past because I love challenges. And, of course, there's a lot of concurrence, and there are a lot of girls that are playing good tennis. New generation also.
The good thing is that I don't feel old yet, so that's already a good point. Even if when I came here I realized it was six years ago I won the Australian Open, so it did hit me a little bit.
Physically and mentally, I don't feel like I'm part of the old generation, so that's good. But, of course get better is something that not only in my tennis, but in my life. I think it's the goal of everyone, is to get better every day. It's going to be my goal on and off the court.
Q. Do you walk away tonight with your confidence lifted higher than where it was, say, this morning?
JUSTINE HENIN: Well, it's always good to win the first round like this, especially after a long wait. It's been a tough day. First round in a Grand Slam is something that I hate, and usually the first week.
But this week is going to be special, because I'm going to be pushed very early at a high level. It's a different situation than in the past.
But my confidence is going to, you know, come slowly and with the matches, with time I'll be on the court. I'm really patient at the moment. I mean, I know not everything will come back in a few matches. I'll need a little bit of time, but I feel great at the moment.
Q. Is it good that you might meet Dementieva in the next round, give you an idea of where you're really at?
JUSTINE HENIN: Well, it was good to play Kim in Brisbane, because that gave me a little bit of an idea where I was. Of course, if I play Dementieva in the second round I'll have to play very good tennis. She's No. 5 in the world. So it's going to be a great challenge for me to play that kind of match very early in the tournament.
And I think, of course, it's a tough draw. But in Grand Slam, every match is difficult. I love to play, I mean, the top players. I know I'll have to be at very high level. So, you know, we'll see what's gonna happen.
But, I mean, I'm not negative about that draw. I take it in the positive way, and that's gonna push me to be a better player, I hope, on Wednesday.
Q. Any problem with the leg injury you picked up in Brisbane?
JUSTINE HENIN: No. My leg is getting better. And my foot. Because I was really concerned about my foot a few days ago. It's getting better with the treatments and everything, so it looks like I'm healthy at the moment. That's the most important thing.
Q. Are you coming to net because it's a challenge, or do you feel like in a couple years it might save your body the wear and tear of having to play so many long points?
JUSTINE HENIN: For different reasons, because I think it's the way I have to play. But, you know, I'm very ‑‑ I can't say that I go a lot to the net because maybe in the next match it's going to be harder. So today I went a lot because I had the opportunities. But I have to do it all the time.
Sometimes it's easier in some matches. But I think it's the way I have to play if I am to get better on grass also in the future. And I think that when I put pressure, that's how I'm better player. Of course, the other players, they like a lot of rhythm. They're hitting the ball very hard from the baseline.
It's always almost the same, you know, a lot of rallies. I have to play with my qualities. That's what I did in the past. It was a good defense, but we changed the zone all the time in the court. That's why I was strong, because I was able to take the ball early and I had a good defense and I was able to change my position on the court all the time.
That's what I'm going to try to do again in the future.
Q. Your example in Kim and maybe Hingis, show that if you start playing the sport at a young age, it becomes so mentally demanding a lot of players need to take a break somewhere mid‑career.
JUSTINE HENIN: Yeah, and I think we ‑‑ I mean, Kim and I, it was early, but it wasn't that early. But still, as we were quite young at the top, it's a life that asks a lot. Especially the way we do it: with a lot of discipline, winning a lot of matches.
In the past, I mean, just before we retired, both of us, I mean, we've been so consistent all the time. And, of course, physically and mentally it's really hard. That's why I think when I see very young players coming on the tour, I'm concerned for them because it's tough.
I think it's very good to go step by step, because it's difficult life. Of course, at 25 I was feeling at the end of my first career quite, whew, tired and I need some air. And that takes everything from you, this kind of life. And you're not able at that age to take the distance you need to understand that, yeah, there is something else than tennis, really to find a good stability.
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โดย: juju's fan IP: 58.136.202.174 20 มกราคม 2553 21:04:39 น.
Any question marks over Justine Henin’s ability to recapture the form which earned her seven Grand Slam titles were largely answered in a dramatic night session match on Wednesday, when the Belgian knocked Elena Dementieva out of Australian Open 2010 in the second round.
This was an eagerly-anticipated encounter from the moment the former No.1 was drawn against the winner of last week’s Medibank International in Sydney. The pedigree of both players made the occasion feel as though it were happening about a week too early, while the quality of the tennis was also worthy of a contest played deep in the second week.
Henin’s 7-5 7-6(6) win was match of enduring quality, one which saw the Russian come close to bundling the Belgian out of her first major since returning from a 20-month hiatus from the tour. Henin is unseeded at this year’s Australian Open, yet somehow Dementieva appeared to be the underdog. There were times when, by her own admission, she was cowed by the calibre of opponent she was up against.
“I think I just let her play that aggressively today. You know, I was not playing deep enough. So I just let her dictate the whole game. That's not the way I was planning to go, you know, on the court,” said Dementieva.
“I feel like I was not aggressive enough. I was not playing deep enough. You know, if you look at the statistic, I was not able to make winners, which I usually do. I mean, she was playing well. But I feel like I gave her the opportunity to play that well. I think she was playing very well. You know, she was moving well, hitting hard. You know, just doesn't feel like she had the break.”
Dementieva was, as she noted ruefully afterwards, ahead in the second set and had chances to take it to a third, but the quality of the opposition simply made the task too difficult for her. Although it was clear from her demeanour afterwards that this was a crushing blow – “I didn’t come here to lose in the second round; I came here to play in the final,” she said – but she was respectful about Henin. The former world No.1 is one of the best players of the last decade, and although she is now a rival again to the likes of Dementieva, she is also something of a role model.
“I just think it's really interesting to play against someone like her. She's a great player. Playing against her, you really can learn a lot and improve your game,” said Dementieva.
“We really need these kind of players to increase the level of the game. So it's great to have her back here on the tour. “
Dementieva’s defeat counts as an upset, but it felt like anything but. Henin is well and truly back.
MELBOURNE, Jan 20 (Reuters) - Despite suffering cramp and nagging self-doubt, Justine Henin’s Australian Open second-round win over Russian Elena Dementieva on Wednesday was just the validation she needed after coming out of retirement.
“It was a special night tonight. That’s why I probably came back on the tour, to live these kind of matches,” an exhausted Henin told reporters after clinching a 7-5 7-6 victory over the world number five at a packed Rod Laver Arena.
“I think I’m already at an amazing level for not having played 18 months and the draw was pretty tough.
“But it’s the kind of thing I need for my confidence. Now we’ll see.”
In beating Dementieva, and proving none of her sublime shot-making had deserted her in the time away from the game, Henin has hinted she could win the trophy in just her second tournament back.
The Belgian, whose seven grand slam titles were built on her ice-cool demeanour during big points, was concerned her skills may have deserted her.
Having failed to despatch U.S. Open champion and fellow comeback queen Kim Clijsters when given two match points in the final of the Brisbane International this month, Henin felt the doubts creep in again when she missed another when serving for the match at 5-4 against Dementieva.
“I thought about Brisbane and the opportunities I got over there,” said Henin. “(I) got the opportunity to finish the match and couldn’t because my nerves weren’t probably solid enough.
“Today I thought it was going to happen again. I really thought in the tiebreak I wouldn’t be strong enough.
“When I got the opportunities, and the way I finished on serve and volley, I mean it was the best I could dream of.”
A third set would have been tough for the 27-year-old who begun to cramp up badly during the tiebreak of the near-three hour match.
Henin next meets another Russian, 27th seed Alisa Kleybanova.
“I don’t have any answer how I’m going to recover in the next 36 hours or so,” she said.
Q. Normally there is an applause for the winner of the tournament, but maybe tonight you deserve it.
JUSTINE HENIN: Well, it was a great match. It was very emotional for me on the court at the end because there was so much intensity. To play this kind of match in the second round, for me, after two years off in a Grand Slam, it's just the kind of situation that I needed.
The crowd gave me so much. So respectful at the end. It was a special night tonight. That's why I probably came back on the tour, was to live this kind of matches.
Q. Was it also a special forehand, the one you missed in match point?
JUSTINE HENIN: Yeah, I think it's there that we can see that I miss the competition a little bit. When I missed that, when she came back to 5‑All, I thought about Brisbane and the opportunities I got over there. Already playing well, and got the opportunity to finish the match and I couldn't, because my nerves wasn't probably solid enough.
And today I thought it was going to happen again. I really thought in the tiebreak I wouldn't be strong enough. And when I got the opportunities, and the way I finished on serve and volley, I mean, it was the best I could dream of.
I felt, All right, let's go for it. It was brief. But that's what I needed. I was almost cramping at the time. Physically I was a bit exhausted at the end so it was the good thing to do.
Q. In such a tight match, what was perhaps the difference between the two of you?
JUSTINE HENIN: You know, we both fought very hard. It was great fight. I think maybe my game at the net. Maybe I took the opportunities a little more, you know, attacking. It was the key. I mean, both of us, we tried to hit the ball very hard, long.
I've been able to play a lot down the line, which I think was a little of a surprise for her. She doesn't like it that much. But she tried to do the same thing. So there was a big fight.
But we both have been pretty solid. And I think maybe the difference was just at the end, you know, to play well on the important points. When I had to save the set point in the tiebreak, I had to be really aggressive and attacking the ball. And I think that made maybe on a few points, but important points, the difference.
Q. Is your problem now going to be recovery?
JUSTINE HENIN: Of course, yeah. Of course. And I don't have any answer now how I'm going to recover in the next 36 hours or so. Well, I'm feeling very happy tonight. Of course, we're going to work a lot now on the recovery, a lot of image, drinking a lot, just trying to get ready. Everything's going to be bonus for me.
Even if I have ambition to go as far in the tournament, today was important for me to win in the tournament because it was my first top‑10 player and I needed that match to get a little bit of confidence and to feel that I'm really back.
Even if I'm not feeling yet at my best level, that I can improve a lot with the intensity and concentration, especially, I'll need more tournaments for that. But I'm glad about what I'm doing here, of course.
Q. Talking about little bit of confidence. Don't you have much now?
JUSTINE HENIN: Well, now, of course, it's great feeling. It's magical to win this kind of match in this kind of atmosphere. Yeah, I'm concerned about tomorrow, when I'm going to wake up, how I'm going to feel. I said the other day I wasn't feeling old. Well, I'll see tomorrow morning (smiling).
Q. Do you feel now you basically can match it with everyone out there?
JUSTINE HENIN: It's difficult to say because, I mean, today I've been able to compete. I've been able to compete against Kim in Brisbane. If we talk about consistent in a whole Grand Slam, well, I don't have any answer now.
I just try to enjoy my game out there. I think I'm already at an amazing level for not having played 18 months, and the draw was pretty tough. But it's the kind of thing I need for my confidence. Now we'll see.
I go step by step. Every match is a bonus that I can play here in Melbourne. If I stay healthy, that's the main important thing.
Q. How are you handling the expectation everyone has on you at the moment?
JUSTINE HENIN: Well, there are expectations. In another way everyone knows also I need competition to really come back at a very good level. What I showed is that I'm still probably a real fighter. But I'll need more time to feel really comfortable and play well on the important points and to be able to make the difference.
But the way is still very long for me. I feel it. Even if people are expecting things, I don't feel that pressure that much at the moment. I knew I could win. But when you don't play for 18 months, you come back, you beat one of the best player in the world, I mean, you just go for it, and that's what I did.
Q. You lost a match with Kim having match points. When tonight you missed the match point, you were down 3‑1 in the tiebreak, you had probably cramping.
JUSTINE HENIN: Almost cramping.
Q. What were you thinking? Again?
JUSTINE HENIN: Yes, I thought when I missed that match point, when I was down in the tiebreak, I was feeling, Well, it's going to be the same kind of situation. But mentally I just tried to stay focused on every point because I knew it was going to be a hard third set. It was already 2 hours and 45 minutes I think or so. So I was ready to give everything in that tiebreak, and that's what I did.
But, of course, that match in Brisbane, it would have been hard for me to lose that way today because I played a very good tennis. It's just that you have to make the difference when you have to. Finally I could make it at the end of the tiebreak. So that's a good thing for me.
Q. Did you have a third set in you if you needed it?
JUSTINE HENIN: Well, I would have played third set, of course. But what's going to happen? I mean, I think Elena was tired, too. Physically and mentally was also difficult. No, don't think about the third set. I prefer not thinking about that.
Q. Can you remember ever playing a second‑round Grand Slam match like this one?
JUSTINE HENIN: I mean, not a second round. I don't think so. Maybe I had difficult matches, winning three sets. Probably it happened to me in the past. But not playing a top like that.
I mean, Davenport I think in 1999 at the French Open, it was 7‑5 in the third. It was my first French Open. And I think it was the second round. But I was 17 years old at that time, so. 10 years later it's a different kind of story.
Q. Any parts of your game that didn't go as you wanted?
JUSTINE HENIN: Well, I've been struggling with my serve, with my toss. Lost a little bit of confidence in the last few days on that. It means that I still have to fix that. It's been ups and downs. Especially I did a couple of double‑faults especially at the beginning of the match.
But, no, generally I was happy that I took the opportunities and went a lot to the net. Mistakes, but a lot of winners also. And I think that made the difference, that I've been moving forward a lot. So that was a good thing for me.
แต่เอแนงก็ไม่ทำให้เราผิดหวัง เข้ารอบ 3 ไปด้วยการเอาชนะ เอเลน่า ดิเมนเมียว่า 7-5 7-6(6) 
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By Ian Ransom
MELBOURNE, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Justine Henin insists her comeback at next week’s Australian Open will be no mere cameo and called on her opponents to test her to her limit.
The former world number one reached the final in Brisbane last week in her first tournament back after 18 months out of the game and said the tough three-set loss to fellow Belgian Kim Clijsters was exactly what she needed.
“I couldn’t expect something better than what happened in Brisbane in terms of the rhythm and intensity of the game that pushed me to another level that I wasn’t use to any more,” the 27-year-old told reporters on Saturday.
“That match really helped me. I still need these kind of matches to really take my game to another level.”
After a first-round encounter against compatriot Kirsten Flipkens, Henin may get exactly what she wishes for at Melbourne Park with Russian fifth seed Elena Dementieva a likely second-round encounter.
Should she progress, Henin could set up a quarter-final against either 2009 French Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova or Clijsters, who won the U.S. Open on her own comeback last year.
Henin, who quit the game in 2008, said she was now “200 percent” committed to her job and had a new calmness and maturity which would help her return to her best.
“I learned a lot of things in the last 18 months. I wouldn’t say I’ve changed but I probably grew up,” she said. “Now I think that I’m going to be as engaged as I was before.
“The experience I had the last two years will help me more calm, more quiet and more mature with my life on the tour.”
FEELING CURIOUS
Henin, who was given a wild card to play here, admitted to feeling curious about how she would feel returning to Melbourne Park, where she defeated Clijsters in the final in 2004.
“It was great to be on the Rod Laver (Arena) again, to hit on this magical court, to see all these people again, people that I didn’t see for a long time,” she said.
“A few things have changed outside but the atmosphere is still the same… It’s a great feeling to be back. Grand slam is a different kind of atmosphere.
“It takes a lot of energy, so I need a dew days to find my place again. I feel it’s my place to be here.”
Henin has overcome leg and foot soreness that forced her withdrawal from this week’s Sydney International and is “almost” at full fitness before the year’s first grand slam.
“I still need to get my confidence again and it will take probably a few weeks, probably a few tournaments maybe a few months to really be at my top,” she said.
“I don’t plan my career on three of four weeks here in Australia, it’s for the next few months when I have a little bit more experience.
“It doesn’t mean I cannot win matches (like at Brisbane). I come with the same attitude in Melbourne.”
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